Amplified Bible (AMP)

The Sins of Israel

1 Then the word of the Lordcame to me, saying,

2 “And you, son of man [Ezekiel], will you judge, will you judge the city of bloodshed? Then make her recognize all her repulsive acts.

3 You shall say, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “A city that sheds blood in her midst, so that her time [of doom] will come, and makes idols to defile her, contrary to herinterest!

4 You have become guilty by the blood which you have shed, and you are defiled by the idols which you have made. Thus you have caused your day [of judgment and punishment] to approach and have arrived at [the completion of] your years; therefore, I have made you an object of scorn to the [pagan] nations and a thing to be mocked by all countries.

5 Those who are near and those who are far from you will mock you, you [infamous one] of ill repute, full of turmoil.

6 “Behold, the princes of Israel, every one according to his power, have been intending to shed blood in you.

7 In you they have treated father and mother lightly. They have oppressed the stranger among you; and in your presence they have wronged the fatherless and the widow.

8 You have despisedandscorned My sacred things and have profaned My Sabbaths.

9 In you are men who slander for the purpose of shedding blood, and in your presence they have eaten [food offered to idols] at the mountain shrines; in your midst they have committed acts of lewdness.

10 In you men have uncovered their fathers’ nakedness [the nakedness of mother or stepmother]; in you they have violated women who are [set apart as ceremonially] unclean during their menstrual impurity [or after childbirth].

11 In you one has committed a shameful act with his neighbor’s wife, another has lewdly defiled his daughter-in-law, and another has violated his sister, his father’s daughter.

12 In you they have accepted bribes to shed blood; you have taken [forbidden] interest and [a percentage of] profits, and you have injured your neighbors for gain by oppressionandextortion, and you have forgotten Me,” says the Lord God.

13 “Behold, therefore, I strike My hands [together] at your dishonest gain which you have acquired and at the bloodshed which is among you.

14 Can your heart (courage) endure, or can your hands be strong in the days that I will deal with you? I the Lordhave spoken, and will act.

15 I will scatter you among the nations and disperse you through the countries, and I will destroy your filthiness.

16 You will defile yourself in the sight of the [Gentile] nations, and you will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord.”’”

17 And the word of the Lordcame to me, saying,

18 “Son of man, the house of Israel has become dross (metallic waste) to Me. All of them are (useless) bronze, tin, iron, and lead in the furnace; they are the dross of silver.

19 Therefore, thus says the Lord God, ‘Because you have all become dross, therefore, behold, I will gather you [O Israel] into the midst of Jerusalem.

20 ~‘As they gather silver and bronze and iron and lead and tin into the furnace to blow fire on it in order to melt it, so I will gather you in My anger and in My wrath, and I will put you there and melt you.

21 ~‘I will gather you and blow on you with the fire of My wrath, and you will be melted in the midst of it.

22 ~‘As silver is melted in the furnace, so will you be melted in the midst of it; and you will know [without any doubt] that I the Lordhave poured out My wrath on you [O Israel].’”

23 And the word of the Lordcame to me, saying,

24 “Son of man, say to her, ‘You [Israel] are a land that is not pronounced clean or rained on in the day of indignation.’

25 There is a conspiracy of her [false] prophets in her midst, like a roaring lion tearing the prey. They have devoured [human] life; they have taken [in their greed] treasure and precious things; they have made many widows among her.

26 Her priests have done violence to My law and have profaned My holy things. They have made no distinction between the holy (sacred) and the profane (secular), they have not taught [people] the difference between the unclean and the clean; and they hide their eyes from My Sabbaths, and I am profaned among them.

27 Her princes within her are like wolves tearinganddevouring the prey, shedding blood and destroying lives in order to get dishonest gain.

28 Her prophets have smeared whitewash for them, seeing false visions and divining lies for them, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord God’–when the Lordhas not spoken.

29 The people of the land have practiced oppressionandextortion and have committed robbery; they have wronged the poor and needy and they have oppressed the stranger without justice.

30 I searched for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand in the gap before Me for [the sake of] the land, that I would not destroy it, but I found no one [not even one].

31 Therefore I have poured out My indignation on them; I have consumed them with the fire of My wrath; I have repaid their way [by bringing it] upon their own heads,” says the Lord God.

Oholah and Oholibah’s Sin and Its Consequences

1 The word of the Lordcame to me again, saying,

2 “Son of man, there were two women (Israel and Judah), the daughters of one mother (the united kingdom);

3 and they prostituted themselves in Egypt. From their youth they were grossly immoral; in that place their breasts were embraced and their virgin bosom was grasped.

4 Their names were Oholah the elder and Oholibah her sister, and they became Mine and they gave birth to sons and daughters. And as for [the identity of] their names, Oholah is Samaria (capital city ofIsrael) and Oholibah is Jerusalem (capital city ofJudah).

5 “Oholah played the prostitute while she was Mine; and she adoredandlusted after her lovers (allies), the Assyrians, her neighbors,

6 who were clothed in purple, governors and officials, all of them attractive young men, horsemen riding on horses.

7 She bestowed [freely] her immoralities on them, the choicest men of Assyria, all of them; and with all whom she adoredandlusted after, she defiled herself with their idols.

8 She did notgive up the acts of prostitution that originatedduring her time inEgypt; for in her youth men had lain with her, and they handled her virgin bosom and poured out their depravity on her.

9 Therefore, I placed her in the hand of her lovers (allies), into the hand of the Assyrians whom she adored.

10 They uncovered her nakedness; they took her sons and her daughters and they killed her with the sword. So she becamenotorious among women, and they executed judgments on her.

11 “Now her sister Oholibah saw this, yet she was more corrupt in her lust than she, and her acts of prostitution were more [wanton] than the immoralities of her sister.

12 She lusted after the Assyrians–governors and officials, her neighbors, magnificently clothed, horsemen riding on horses, all of them desirable young men.

13 I saw that she had defiled herself; they bothbehavedthe same way.

14 But Oholibah carried her depravity further, for she saw men pictured on the wall, the images of the Chaldeans (Babylonians) sketchedandportrayed in vermilion (bright red pigment),

15 girded with belts on theirloins, with flowing turbans on their heads, all of them looking like officers, like the Babylonian men whose native land was Chaldea.

16 When she saw [the sketches of] them, she lusted after them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea.

17 The Babylonians came to her to the bed of love and they defiled her with their evil desire; and when she had been defiled by them, she (Jerusalem) broke the relationshipandpushed them away from her in disgust.

18 So she flaunted her acts of prostitution and exposed her nakedness; then I became disgusted with her [and turned away], as I had become disgusted with her sister [and turned away].

19 Yet she multiplied her depravities, remembering the days of her youth, when she was actively immoral in the land of Egypt.

20 For she lusted after her lovers [there], whose flesh is like the flesh of donkeys and whose issue is like the issue of horses.

21 Thus you longed for the lewdnessandvulgarity of your youth, when the Egyptians handled your bosom on account of the breasts of your youth.

22 “Therefore, O Oholibah, thus says the Lord God, ‘Behold, I will stir up your lovers (allies) against you, from whom you turned away in disgust, and I will bring them against you from every side:

23 the Babylonians and all the Chaldeans, Pekod and Shoa and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them, desirable young men, governors and officials all of them, princes, officers and men of renown, all of them riding on horses.

24 ~‘They will come against you with weapons, chariots, and wagons, and with a company of people (infantry) who will array themselves against you on every side with large shield and small, and helmet; and I will commit the judgmentandthe punishment to them, and they will judgeandpunish you in accordance with their [pagan] customs.

25 ~‘I will set My jealous indignation against you [demanding what is rightfully and uniquely mine], and they will deal with you in fury. They will remove your nose and your ears, and your survivors will fall by the sword. They will take your sons and your daughters; and the survivors will be devoured by the fire.

26 ~‘They will also strip you (Judah) of your clothes and take away your beautiful jewels.

27 ~‘Thus I will put an end to your lewdness and your prostitutionbroughtfrom the land of Egypt, so that you will not lift up your eyes to them or remember Egypt [with longing] anymore.’

28 For thus says the Lord God, ‘Behold, I will place you into the hands of those whom you hate, into the hands of those from whom you turned away in disgust.

29 ~‘They will deal with you in hatred, take all your property, and leave you naked and bare. And the nakedness of your depravity will be uncovered, both your lewdness and your obscene practices.

30 ~‘These things will be done to you because you have prostituted yourself with the [Gentile] nations, because you have defiled yourself with their idols.

31 ~‘You have walked in the way of your sister (Samaria); therefore I will give her cup [of judgment] into your hand.’

32 Thus says the Lord God,

‘You will drink your sister’s cup,

Which is deep and wide [and filled to the brim].

You shall be laughed at and derided;

It contains much [too much to endure].

33 ‘You shall be filled with drunkenness and sorrow,

With the cup of horror and desolation,

With the cup of your sister Samaria.

34 ‘You will drink it and drain it,

Then you will gnaw its fragments

And tear your breasts;

for I have spoken,’ says the Lord God.

35 Therefore, thus says the Lord God, ‘Because you have forgotten Me and cast Me behind your back, therefore bear now [the consequences of] your lewdness and prostitution.’”

36 Moreover, the Lordsaid to me, “Son of man, will you judge Oholah (Samaria, capital of Israel) and Oholibah (Jerusalem, capital of Judah)? Then inform them of their atrocities [the detestable and vile things they do].

37 For they have committed adultery, and blood is on their hands. They have committed adultery [against Me] with their idols and have even forced their sons, whom they bore to Me, to pass through the fire as [an offering of] food to them (idols).

38 Moreover, they have done this to Me: they have defiled My sanctuary on the same day [of their idolatries] and have profaned My Sabbaths.

39 For when they had killed their children [as offerings] to their idols, then they came the same day to My sanctuary to profane it [by daring to offer a sacrifice there also]. And behold, this they did within My house.

40 “Furthermore, you have even sent a messenger for men to come from far away; and behold, they came–those for whom you bathed, painted your eyes, and decorated yourself with ornaments;

41 and you sat on a splendid couch with a table arranged before it on which you had set My incense and My oil.

42 The sound of a carefree crowd was with her; and drunkards were brought from the wilderness with men of a common sort, who put bracelets on the hands of the women (both sisters) and beautiful crowns on their heads.

43 “Then I said concerning the one (Oholah) worn out by adulteries, ‘Will they now commit adultery with her when she is like this?’

44 But they committed adultery with her as they would with a prostitute. So they went in to Oholah (Israel) and to Oholibah (Judah), the lewd women.

45 And they, righteous men, will judgeandcondemn them with the judgment (punishment) of adulteresses and with the judgment of women who shed blood, because they are adulteresses and blood is on their hands.

46 “For thus says the Lord God, ‘Bring up a horde (mob) against them and hand them over to terror and plunder.

47 ~‘And the horde will stone them with stones and cut them down with their swords; they will kill their sons and their daughters and burn down their houses with fire.

48 ~‘Thus I will make lewdness cease from the land, that all women may be admonishedandtaught not to commit immoral acts as you have done.

49 ~‘Thus your lewdness will be repaid to you, and you will suffer the penalty for your [sinful] idolatry; and you will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord God.’”

Parable of the Boiling Pot

1 Again in the ninth year [of King Jehoiachin’s captivity by Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon], in the tenth month, on the tenth [day] of the month, the word of the Lordcame to me, saying,

2 “Son of man, record the name of the day, this very day. The king of Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem this very day.

3 Speak a parable against the rebellious house [of Judah] and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God,

“Put on a pot; put it on and also pour water into it;

4 “Put in it the pieces [of meat],

Every good piece (the people of Jerusalem), the thigh and the shoulder;

Fill it with choice bones.

5 “Take the choicest of the flock,

And also pile wood under the pot.

Make it boil vigorously

And boil its bones in the pot.”

6 ‘Therefore, thus says the Lord God,

“Woe (judgment is coming) to the bloody city,

To the pot in which there is rust

And whose rust has not gone out of it!

Take out of it piece by piece,

Without making any choice.

7 “For her blood [that she has shed] remains in her midst;

She put it on the bare rock;

She did not pour it on the ground

To cover it with dust.

8 “That it may cause wrath to come up to take vengeance,

I have put her blood [guilt for her children sacrificed to Molech] on the bare rock,

That it may not be covered.”

9 ‘Therefore, thus says the Lord God,

“Woe to the bloody city!

I will also make the pile [of wood] high.

10 “Heap on wood, kindle the fire,

Boil the meat well [done]

And mix in the spices,

And let the bones be burned.

11 “Then set the empty pot (Jerusalem) back on the coals

So that it may be hot

And its bronze may glow

And its filthiness may be melted

And its rust (scum) may be consumed.

12 “She has wearied Me with toil,

Yet her great rust has not left her;

Her thick rustandfilth will not be burned away by fire [no matter how hot the flame].

13 “In your filthiness are lewdnessandoutrage.

Therefore Iwouldhave cleansed you,

Yet you were not [willing to be] cleansed,

You will not be cleansed from your filthiness again

Until I have satisfied My wrath against you.

14 I the Lordhave spoken; it is coming and I will act. I will not relent, and I will not have compassion and I will not be sorry; in accordance with your ways and in accordance with your deeds I will judgeandpunish you,” says the Lord God.’”

Death of Ezekiel’s Wife Is a Sign

15 Also the word of the Lordcame to me, saying,

16 “Son of man, listen carefully, I am about to take away from you the desire of your eyes [your wife] with a single stroke. Yet you shall not mourn and you shall not weep, and your tears shall not flow.

17 Sighandgroan in silence; do not mourn for the dead. Bind on your turban and put your sandals on your feet, and do not cover your mustache or eat the bread of [mourners furnished by other] men.”

18 So I spoke to the people in the morning, andin the evening my wife died. And the next morning I did as I was commanded.

19 The people said to me, “These things that you are doing–tell us, what do they mean for us?”

20 Then I answered them, “The word of the Lordcame to me, saying,

21 ‘Speak to the house of Israel, “Thus says the Lord God, ‘Behold, I willprofane My sanctuary, the pride of your strength, the desire of your eyes, and the delight of your soul; and your sons and your daughters whom you have left behind [in Jerusalem] will fall by the sword.

22 ~‘You will do as I [Ezekiel] have done; you shall not cover your mustache nor eat the bread of [mourning brought to you by other] men.

23 ~‘Your turbans will be on your heads and your sandals on your feet. You will not mourn or weep, but you will rot away in your sins and you will groan to one another.

24 ~‘So Ezekiel will be a sign to you; in accordance with all that he has done you will do. And when this [destruction of the temple] comes, then you will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord God.’”

25 ‘As for you, son of man, on the day when I take their strengthandtheir stronghold from them, their joy and their glory, the desire of their eyes andtheir heart’s [chief] delight (the temple), and I also take their sons and their daughters,

26 that on that day a survivor will come to you to let you hear [of the destruction of Jerusalem] with your [own] ears.

27 ~‘On that dayyour mouth will be opened to him who escaped, and you will speak and no longer be mute. In this way you shall be a sign to them, and they will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord.’”

Judgment on Gentile Nations–Ammon

1 The word of the Lordcame to me again, saying,

2 “Son of man, set your face toward theAmmonites and prophesy against them.

3 And say to the Ammonites, ‘Hear the word of the Lord God, for thus says the Lord God, “Because you said, ‘Aha!’ against My sanctuary when it was profaned and against the land of Israel when it was made desolate and against the house of Judah when they went into exile,

4 therefore, behold, I am going to give you to the people of the East as a possession, and they will set their encampments among you and make their dwellings among you; they will eat your fruit and drink your milk.

5 I will make Rabbah [your chief city] a pasture for camels and [the cities of] the Ammonites a resting place for flocks [of sheep]. And you will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord.”

6 ~‘For thus says the Lord God, “Because you have clapped your hands and stamped your feet and rejoiced with all the contempt,andmalice,andspite of your soul against the land of Israel,

7 therefore, behold, I have stretched out My hand against you and will hand you over as preyandspoil to the nations. And I will cut you off from the peoples and will cause you to perish from the countries; I will destroy you. Then you shall know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord.”

Moab

8 ‘Thus says the Lord God, “BecauseMoab and Seir (Edom) say, ‘Behold, the house of Judah is like all the [pagan] nations,’

9 therefore, behold, I will deprive the flank of Moab of its cities which are on its frontiers, the glory of the land, Beth-jeshimoth, Baal-meon and Kiriathaim.

10 I will give it, along with the children of Ammon, to the people of the East as a possession, so that the children of Ammon will not be remembered among the nations [any longer].

11 Thus I will execute judgmentandpunishment on Moab, and they will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord.”

Edom

12 ‘Thus says the Lord God, “BecauseEdom has acted against the house of Judah by taking vengeance, and has greatly offendedandhas incurred grievous guilt by taking revenge on them,”

13 therefore thus says the Lord God, “I will also stretch out My hand against Edom and I will cut offanddestroy man and beast. I will make it desolate; from Teman even to Dedan they will fall by the sword.

14 I will take My vengeance on Edom by the hand of My people Israel. Therefore, they will act in Edom in accordance with My anger and My wrath, and they will knowandexperience My vengeance,” says the Lord God.

Philistia

15 ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Because thePhilistines have acted revengefully and have taken vengeance [contemptuously] with malice in their hearts to destroy with everlasting hostilityandhatred,”

16 therefore thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I will stretch out My hand against the Philistines, and I will cut off theCherethites and destroy the remnant of the seacoast.

17 I will execute great vengeance on them with wrathful rebukesandchastisements and they will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lordwhen I lay My vengeance on them.”’”

Judgment on Tyre

1 Now in the eleventh year, on the first [day] of the month [after the capture of King Jehoiachin], the word of the Lordcame to me, saying,

2 “Son of man, becauseTyre has said against Jerusalem, ‘Aha! The gateway of the people is broken; she is open to me. I will be filled,now thatshe is a desolate waste,’

3 therefore, thus says the Lord God, ‘Behold, I am against you, O Tyre, and I will cause many nations to come up against you, as the sea makes its waves crest.

4 ~‘They will destroy the walls of Tyre and break down her towers; and I will scrape her dustanddebris from her and make her as bare as [the top of] a rock.

5 ~‘Her island in the midst of the sea will become a dry place to spread nets, for I have spoken,’ says the Lord God, ‘and she will become a preyanda spoil for the nations.

6 ~‘Also Tyre’s daughters (towns, villages)on the mainland will be killed by the sword, and they will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord.’”

7 For thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I will bring upon Tyre from the northNebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, king of kings, with horses and chariots and with horsemen and a great army.

8 He will kill your daughters on the mainland with the sword, and he shall make siege walls against you and build a siege ramp against you and raise [a roof of] large shields [as a defense] against you.

9 He will direct the [shocking] blow of his battering rams against your walls, and he will tear down your towers with his crowbars.

10 Because of the great number of his horses, their dust will cover you; your walls [O Tyre] will shake from the noise of the horsemen and the wagons and the chariots when he enters your gates as men enter a city that is breached.

11 With the hoofs of his horses Nebuchadnezzar will trample all your streets; with the sword he will kill your people, and your strong pillars (obelisks) will fall to the ground.

12 Also they will take your riches as spoil and plunder your merchandise, and tear down your walls and your pleasant houses, and throw your stones and your timber and the debris [from your city] out in the water.

13 So I will silence your songs, and the sound of your lyres will no longer be heard.

14 I will make you [Tyre] abare rock; you will be a dry place on which to spread nets. You will never be rebuilt, for I the Lordhave spoken,” says the Lord God.

15 Thus says the Lord Godto Tyre, “Shall not the coastlands shake at the sound of your fall when the wounded groan, when the slaughter occurs in your midst?

16 Then all the princes of the sea will go down from their thrones and remove their robes and take off their embroidered garments. They will clothe themselves with trembling; they will sit on the ground, tremble again and again, and be appalled at you.

17 They will take up a dirge (funeral poem to be sung) for you and say to you,

‘How you have perishedandvanished, O renowned city,

From the seas, O renowned city,

Which was mighty on the sea,

She and her inhabitants,

Who imposed her terror

On all who lived there!

18 ‘Now the coastlands will tremble

On the day of your fall;

Yes, the coastlands which are by the sea

Will be terrified at your departure.’”

19 For thus says the Lord God, “When I make you a desolate city, like the cities which are not inhabited, when I bring up the deep over you and great waters cover you,

20 then I will bring you down with those who descend into the pit (the place of the dead), to the people of old, and I will make you [Tyre] live in the depths of the earth, like the ancient ruins, with those who go down to the pit, so that you will not be inhabited; but I will set gloryandsplendor in the land of the living.

21 I will bring terrors on you and you will be no more. Though you will be sought, yet you will never be found again,” says the Lord God.

Dirge for Tyre

1 The word of the Lordcame to me again, saying,

2 “Now you, son of man, take up a dirge (funeral poem to be sung) for Tyre,

3 and say to Tyre, who lives at the entrance to the sea, merchant of the peoples to many coastlands, ‘Thus says the Lord God,

“O Tyre, you have said, ‘I am perfect in beauty.’

4 “Your borders are in the heart of the seas;

Your builders have perfected your beauty.

5 “They have made all your planks of fir trees fromSenir;

They have taken a cedar from Lebanon to make a mast for you.

6 “Of the oaks of Bashan they have made your oars;

They have made your deck of boxwood from the coastlands of Cyprus, inlaid with ivory.

7 “Your sail was of fine embroidered linen from Egypt

So that it became your distinguishing mark (insignia);

Your [ship’s] awning [which covered you] was blue and purple from the coasts of Elishah [of Asia Minor].

8 “The inhabitants of Sidon and [the island] of Arvad were your oarsmen;

Your skilledandwise men, O Tyre, were with you; they were your pilots.

9 “The elders ofGebal and its skilledandwise men were with you, repairing your leaks;

All the ships of the sea with their mariners were with you to deal in your merchandise.

10 “Persia and Lud and Put (Libya) were in your army as your men of war. They hung the shield and the helmet on you; they gave you splendor.

11 The men of Arvad with your army were upon your walls, all around, and the Gammadim (men of valor) were in your towers. They hung their shields on your walls, all around; they perfected your beauty.

12 “Tarshish [in Spain] was your customerandtraded with you because of the abundance of your riches of all kinds; with silver, iron, tin, and lead they paid for your wares.

13 Javan (Greece), Tubal and Meshech (Asia Minor) traded with you; with the lives of men [taken as slaves] and vessels of bronze they paid for your merchandise.

14 Those from Beth-togarmah (Armenia) traded for your wares with [chariot] horses, war horses, and mules.

15 The men ofDedan were your traders. Many coastlands were your markets; ivory tusks and ebony they brought to you in paymentoras gifts.

16 Aram traded with you because of the abundance of the goods you made. They paid for your merchandise with emeralds, purple, embroidered work, fine linen, coral, and rubies.

17 Judah and the land of Israel, they were your traders; with the wheat of Minnith [in Ammon], cakes, honey, oil, and balm they paid for your goods.

18 Damascus traded with you because of the abundance of your handiworks and the immense wealth of every kind, with the wine of Helbon [Aleppo] and the white wool [of Sachar in Syria].

19 Vedan and Javan traded with yarn from Uzal [in Arabia] for your wares; wrought iron, cassia, and sweet cane were among your merchandise.

20 Dedan traded with you in saddle blankets for riding.

21 Arabia and all the princes of Kedar, they were your customers for lambs, rams, and goats [favored by you]; for these they were your customers.

22 The merchants of Sheba and Raamah [in Arabia], they traded with you; they paid for your wares with the choicest of all kinds of spices and all kinds of precious stones and gold.

23 Haran and Canneh and Eden [in Mesopotamia], the merchants of Sheba [on the Euphrates], Asshur and Chilmad traded with you.

24 They traded with you in choice fabricsandgarments, in clothes of blueorviolet and embroidered work, and in [treasures of] multi-colored damaskandknotted carpets bound with tightly wound cords,which wereamong your merchandise.

25 The ships of Tarshish were the caravans for your merchandise,

And you [Tyre] were replenished and very glorious [heavily laden with an imposing fleet]

In the heart of the seas.

26 “Your rowers have brought you

Into greatanddeep waters;

The east wind has brokenandshipwrecked you

In the heart of the seas.

27 “Your riches, your wares, your merchandise

Your oarsmen and your pilots,

Your caulkers, your dealers in merchandise,

And all your men of war who are with you,

With all your company that is in your midst,

Will sink in the heart of the seas

On the day of your ruin.

28 “The pasture landsandthe countryside will shake

At the [piercing] sound of the [hopeless, wailing] cry of your pilots.

29 “All who handle the oar,

The mariners and all the pilots of the sea

Will come down from their ships;

They will stand on the shore,

30 And they will make their voice heard [as they wail loudly] over you

And they will cry bitterly.

They will throw dust on their heads;

They will wallow in ashes.

31 “And they will make themselves [completely] bald for you

And wrap themselves in sackcloth;

And in bitterness of soul they will weep for you

With bitter mourningandwailing.

32 “In their wailing they will take up a dirge (funeral poem to be sung) for you

And sing a dirge for you:

‘Who is like Tyre,

Like her who is silent [destroyed] in the midst of the sea?

33 ‘When your wares went out to the sea,

You met the desire,andthe demand,andthe necessities of many people;

You enriched the kings of the earth

With your abundant wealth and merchandise.

34 ‘Now you are shattered by the seas

In the depths of the waters;

Your merchandise and all your crew

Have gone down with you.

35 ‘All the inhabitants of the coastlands

Are aghastandappalled at you,

And their kings are horribly frightenedandshudder;

Their faces twitchandpale.

36 ‘The merchants among the people hiss at you [with malicious joy];

You have become a horroranda source of terrors.

You will cease to beforever.’”’”

Tyre’s King Overthrown

1 The word of the Lordcame again to me, saying,

2 “Son of man, say to the prince of Tyre, ‘Thus says the Lord God,

“Because your heart is lifted up

And you have saidandthought, ‘I am a god,

I sit in the seat of the gods

In the heart of the seas’;

Yet you are [only] a man [weak, feeble, made of earth] and not God,

Though you [imagine yourself to be more than mortal and] think your mind is as [wise as] the mind of God–

3 Behold, you are [imagining yourself] wiser than Daniel;

There is no secret [you think] that is hidden from you;

4 With your [own] wisdom and with your [own] understanding

You have acquired your richesandpower

And have brought gold and silver into your treasuries;

5 By your great wisdom and by your trade

You have increased your richesandpower,

And your heart is proudandarrogant because of your wealth;

6 Therefore thus says the Lord God,

‘Because you have imagined your mind [to be]

Like the mind of God [having thoughts and plans like God Himself],

7 Therefore, behold, I will bring strangers (Babylonians) upon you,

The most ruthlessandviolent of the nations.

And they will draw their swords

Against the beauty of your wisdom [O Tyre]

And defile your splendor.

8 ‘They will bring you down to the pit [of destruction],

And you will die the death of all those who die

In the heart of the seas.

9 ‘Will you still say, “I am a god,”

In the presence of him who kills you?

But you are [only] a man [made of earth] and not God,

In the hands of those who woundandprofane you.

10 ‘You will die the death of the uncircumcised [barbarian]

By the hand of strangers,

For I have spoken!’ says the Lord God.”’”

11 Again the word of the Lordcame to me, saying,

12 “Son of man, take up a dirge (funeral poem to be sung) for the king of Tyre and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord God,

“You had the full measure of perfectionandthe finishing touch [of completeness],

Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.

13 “You were inEden, the garden of God;

Every precious stone was your covering:

The ruby, the topaz, and the diamond;

The beryl, the onyx, and the jasper;

The lapis lazuli, the turquoise, and the emerald;

And the gold, the workmanship of yoursettings and your sockets,

Was in you.

They were prepared

On the day that you were created.

14 “You were the anointed cherub who coversandprotects,

And I placed you there.

You were on the holy mountain of God;

You walked in the midst of the stones of fire [sparkling jewels].

15 “You were blameless in your ways

From the day you were created

Until unrighteousnessandevil were found in you.

16 “Through the abundance of your commerce

You were internally filled with lawlessnessandviolence,

And you sinned;

Therefore I have cast you out as a profaneandunholy thing

From the mountain of God.

And I have destroyed you, O covering cherub,

From the midst of the stones of fire.

17 “Your heart was proudandarrogant because of your beauty;

You destroyed your wisdom for the sake of your splendor.

I cast you to the ground;

I lay you before kings,

That they might look at you.

18 “You profaned your sanctuaries

By the great quantity of your sinsandthe enormity of your guilt,

By the unrighteousness of your trade.

Therefore I have brought forth a fire from your midst;

It has consumed you,

And I have reduced you to ashes on the earth

In the sight of all who look at you.

19 “All the peoples (nations) who knew you

Are appalled at you;

You have come to a horribleandterrifying end

And will forever cease to be.”’”

Judgment of Sidon

20 Again the word of the Lordcame to me, saying,

21 “Son of man, set your face toward Sidon, and prophesy against her

22 and say, ‘Thus says the Lord God,

“Behold, I am against you, O Sidon,

And I will show My gloryandbe glorified in your midst.

Then they will know [by personal experience] that I am the Lordwhen I bring judgmentandpunishment on her,

And I will manifest My holiness in her.

23 “For I will send virulent disease to her

And blood into her streets,

And the wounded will fall in her midst

By the sword upon her from every side,

And they shall know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord.

24 And there will no longer be a briar or a painful thorn to prick the house of Israel from all those around them who treated them with contempt; then they will know [with clarity] that I am the Lord God.”

Israel Regathered

25 ‘Thus says the Lord God, “When I gather the house of Israel from the nations among whom they are scattered, and I manifest my Holiness in them in the sight of the nations, then they will live in their own land which I gave to My servant Jacob.

26 They shall live in it securely; and they will build houses, plant vineyards and live securely when I execute judgment on all those around them who despise them. Then they will know [with clarity and confidence] that I am the Lordtheir God.”’”

Judgment of Egypt

1 In the tenth year [of the captivity of King Jehoiachin by the king of Babylon], in the tenthmonth,on the twelfth of the month, the word of the Lordcame to me, saying,

2 “Son of man, set your face toward Pharaoh king of Egypt, and prophesy against him and against all Egypt.

3 Speak and say, ‘Thus says the Lord God,

“Behold, I am against you, Pharaoh king of Egypt,

The great monster that lies in the midst of his rivers,

[Boastfully] declaring, ‘My Nile is my own, and I have made it for myself.’

4 “I will put hooks in your jaws

And [I will] make the fish of your rivers stick to your scales.

And I will pull you up from the midst of your rivers,

And all the fish of your rivers will stick to your scales.

5 “I will abandon you to the wilderness, you and all the fish of your rivers;

You will fall on the open field; and you will not be gathered up or buried.

I have given you as food to the [wild] animals of the earth and the birds of the sky.

6 “And all the inhabitants of Egypt will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord,

Because they have been [only] a staff made of [fragile] reeds to the house of Israel.

7 “When they (Israel) grasped you (Egypt) by the hand,

You broke and tore apart their hands;

When they leaned on you,

You broke and strained their backs.”

8 ‘Therefore thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I am going to bring a sword on you and cut off (destroy) both man and animal,

9 and the land of Egypt will be a desolation and a wasteland. And they will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord.

“Because you said, ‘The Nile is mine and I have made it,’

10 behold (hear this), therefore, I am against you and against your rivers (the Nile, its tributaries), and I will make the land of Egypt a complete waste and a desolation, from [northern] Migdol to [southern]Syene, even as far as the border of Ethiopia (Cush).

11 No man’s foot will pass through it, no animal’s foot will pass through it, and it will not be inhabited for forty years.

12 So I will make the land of Egypt a desolation [plundered and ruined] among desolated lands; and her cities, among cities that are laid waste, will be desolate forty years. I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations and [I will] disperse them through the lands.”

13 ‘For thus says the Lord God, “At the end of forty years I will gather the Egyptians from the nations among whom they were scattered.

14 I will reverse the fortunes of Egypt [as I will that of Israel] and cause them to return to the land of Pathros, the land of their origin, and there they will be a lowly kingdom.

15 It will be the lowliest of the kingdoms, and it willnever again exalt itself above the nations; I will diminish the Egyptians so they will never again rule over the nations.

16 And Egypt will never again have the confidence of the house of Israel; their wickedness will be remembered whenever Israel looks toward them [for help]. Then they will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord God.”’”

17 In the twenty-seventh year [after King Jehoiachin was taken to Babylon], in the firstmonth,on the first of the month, the word of the Lordcame to me, saying,

18 “Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon made his armywork hard [at My command] against Tyre; every [soldier’s] head becamebald and every shoulder was wornandpeeled [from carrying loads of dirt and stones for siege works]. Yet he had no wages from Tyre [in proportion to the time and labor expended during the siege], either for himself or his army, for the work that he had done against it [for Me].”

19 Therefore thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I will give the land of Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. And he will carry off her wealth and capture her spoil and seize her plunder; and it shall be the wages for his army.

20 I have given him the land of Egypt for the hard work which he did [against Tyre], because they did it for Me,” says the Lord God.

21 “In that day I will make a horn sprout for the house of Israel, and I will open your mouth among them, and they will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord[when I renew their strength].”

Dirge for Egypt

1 The word of the Lordcame again to me, saying,

2 “Son of man, prophesy and say, ‘Thus says the Lord God,

“Wail, ‘Alas for the day!’

3 “For the day is near,

Even the day of the Lordis near,

It will be a cloudy day;

A timeof doomfor the nations.

4 “A sword will come upon Egypt,

And anguishandtrembling will be in Ethiopia (Cush),

When the slain fall in Egypt

And they [of Babylon] carry away her great mass of peopleandher riches

And her foundations are torn down.

5 Ethiopia (Cush), Put, Lud, allArabia, Libya (Cub) and the people of the land of the covenant [the Jews who had taken refuge in Egypt] will fall with the Egyptians by the sword.”

6 ‘Thus says the Lord,

“Those who upholdandsupport Egypt will fall

And the pride of her power will come down;

From Migdol [in the north] to Syene [in the south]

They will fall within her by the sword,”

Says the Lord God.

7 “And they will be desolate

In the midst of countries that are desolated;

And her cities will be

Among cities that are devastated [by plunder and slavery].

8 “And they will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord,

When I have set a fire in Egypt

And all her helpers are shatteredanddestroyed.

9 On that day [swift] messengers will go from Me in ships to frighten the carelessandunsuspecting Ethiopians, and there will be anguishandtrembling in them as in the day of [judgment for] Egypt; for behold, it is coming!”

10 ‘Thus says the Lord God,

“I will also make the great people of Egypt cease

By the hand ofNebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.

11 “He and his people with him,

The most violentandruthless of the nations,

Will be brought in to destroy the land,

And they will draw their swords against Egypt

And fill the land with the slain.

12 “And I will make the rivers [of the Nile delta] dry

And sell the land into the hands of evil men;

I will make the land desolate

And all that is in it,

By the hand of strangers. I the Lordhave spoken.”

13 ‘Thus says the Lord God,

“I will also destroy the idols

And I will put an end to the images in Memphis;

There will no longer be a prince of the land of Egypt.

And I will put fear in the land of Egypt.

14 “I will make Pathros desolate,

Set fire to Zoan

And execute judgmentsandpunishments on Thebes.

15 “I will pour out My wrath on Pelusium,

The stronghold of Egypt,

And I will cut off (destroy) the population of Thebes.

16 “I will set fire to Egypt;

Pelusium will writhe in [great] anguish,

Thebes shall be torn open

And Memphis shall be in daily distress.

17 “The young men of On (Aven) and of Pi-beseth

Will fall by the sword,

And the women [and children] will go into captivity.

18 “In Tehaphnehes the day will be dark

When I break the yoke barsanddominion of Egypt there.

Then the pride of her power will come to an end;

A cloud [of disasters] will cover her,

And her daughters will go into captivity.

19 “In this way I will bring judgmentandpunishment on Egypt.

Then they shall know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord.”’”

Victory for Babylon

20 In the eleventh year [after King Jehoiachin was taken to Babylon], in the firstmonth,on the seventh of the month, the word of the Lordcame to me, saying,

21 “Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and behold, it has not been bound up to heal or wrapped with a bandage, so that it may be strong to holdandwield the sword.

22 Therefore thus says the Lord God, ‘Behold, I am against Pharaoh king of Egypt and will break his arms, both the strong one and the broken, and I will make the sword fall from his hand.

23 ~‘I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations and will disperse them throughout the lands.

24 ~‘I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon and put My sword in his hand; but I will break Pharaoh’s arms and he will groan before him (Nebuchadnezzar) with the groanings of a [mortally] wounded man.

25 ~‘But I will strengthenandhold up the arms of the king of Babylon and the arms of Pharaoh will fall down. Then the people [of Egypt] will know that I am the Lord, when I put My sword into the hand of the king of Babylon and he stretches it out against the land of Egypt.

26 ~‘When I scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them through the lands, then they will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord.’”

Pharaoh Warned of Assyria’s Fate

1 In the eleventh year [after King Jehoiachin was taken captive to Babylon], in the thirdmonth,on the first of the month, the word of the Lordcame to me, saying,

2 “Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his hordes,

‘Whom are you like in your greatness?

3 ‘Behold (listen carefully), Assyria was a cedar in Lebanon

With beautiful branches and with forest shade,

And of high stature,

With its top among the clouds.

4 ‘The waters nourished it, the deep [underground waters] made it grow tall.

Its rivers ran all around the place where it was planted,

Sending out its streams to all the trees (other nations) of the field.

5 ‘Therefore it towered higher than all the trees of the forest

And its boughs multiplied and its branches grew long;

Because there was so much water they spread outward.

6 ‘All the birds of the sky made their nests in its twigs,

And under its branches all the animals of the field gave birth [to their young],

And all of the great nations lived under its shadow.

7 ‘So it was beautiful in its greatness, in the length of its branches;

For its roots extended [downward] to great waters.

8 ‘The cedars in the garden of God could not hideorrival it;

The cypress trees did not have boughs like it,

And theplane trees did not have branches like it.

No tree in the garden of God was like it in its beauty.

9 ‘I made it beautiful with the great mass of its branches,

So that all the trees ofEden which were in the garden of God were jealous of it (Assyria).

10 ‘Therefore thus says the Lord God, “Because it is high in stature and has set its top among the thick boughsandthe clouds, and its heart is proud of its height,

11 I willhand it over to a mighty oneanda mighty one of the nations; he will most certainly deal with it. I have driven it away in accordance with its wickedness.

12 Alien tyrants of the nations have cut it down and left it; its foliage has fallen on the mountains and in all the valleys and its branches have been broken in all the ravines of the land. And all the nations of the earth have come from under its shade and have left it.

13 All the birds of the sky will nest in its ruins, and all the animals of the field will rest on itsfallenbranches

14 so that none of the trees by the waters may exalt themselves because of their height, nor set their top among the clouds, nor their well-watered mighty ones stand [arrogantly] in their height. For they have all been handed over to death, to the earth beneath, among the sons of men, with those who go down to the pit (the grave).”

15 ‘Thus says the Lord God, “On the day when Assyria went down to Sheol (the place of the dead) I caused mourning; I closed the deep [subterranean waters] over it and restrained its rivers. And the many waters [that contributed to its prosperity] were held back; and I made [the heart of] Lebanon mourn for it, and all the trees of the field wilted away because of it.

16 I made the nations quake at the sound of its fall when I cast it down to Sheol with those who descend into the pit; and all the well-watered trees of Eden, the choicest and the best of Lebanon, will be comforted in the earth beneath [at Assyria’s downfall].

17 They also went down to Sheol with it to those who were slain by the sword; those who were its strength lived under its shade among the nations.

18 “Which among the trees of Eden do you equal in glory and in greatness [O Egypt]? Yet you [also] will be brought down with the trees of Eden to the earth beneath (nether world). You will lie among theuncircumcised (the barbaric, the boorish, the crude) with those who were slain by the sword. This ishow it shall bewith Pharaoh and all his hordes!”’ says the Lord God.”